candelibri's reviews
2033 reviews

How to Stand Up to a Dictator by Maria Ressa

challenging informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

5.0

I need a physical copy of my own - way too many gems that I need to annotate bc as Americans, we are entering the fight of our lives and this is the literal blueprint. 

Buttermilk Graffiti: A Chef's Journey to Discover America's New Melting-Pot Cuisine by Edward Lee

adventurous lighthearted relaxing fast-paced

4.0

Before the Next Bomb Drops: Rising Up from Brooklyn to Palestine by Remi Kanazi

challenging emotional reflective fast-paced

5.0

Read this read this read this read this read this READ. THIS. 

My heart is in TATTERS. I am in complete disbelief that this was published in 2015. How. HOW?! I would have BET. MONEY. that this was a new release. 

This is the pinnacle of intersectional writing. If I could have shared every poem, I would have. 

“Say their names
Like Newtown children
say their names
al Bayda, Shejaiya
Chicago, Staten Island
say their names
like haunting whispers
say their names”

I am just in awe. Every poem had me (metaphorically) throwing this book - I got it from the library so it was on my iPad - because this is exactly what I want from a collection that prides itself on sociopolitical commentary. Remi Kanazi leaves no stone unturned and spares no group, no topic from his pen. 

Easily one of my favorite collections to date and I am so disappointed that it’s taken me this long to hear about it. 

James by Percival Everett

adventurous challenging medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.25

Wow…this book has had such high reviews from everyone, I was really worried it wouldn’t live up to expectations. So happy to have been proved wrong! Absolutely excellent.

Bless the Blood: A Cancer Memoir by Walela Nehanda

challenging emotional informative reflective slow-paced

4.5

What a freaking BANGER. Read this. Argue with a brick wall. 

The Originalism Trap: How Extremists Stole the Constitution and How We the People Can Take It Back by Madiba K. Dennie

challenging informative reflective tense medium-paced

5.0

There are far too few reviews for this book so while I’d rate this a 4.5, I’m rounding this up so that this has a snowball’s chance of getting through to people. This is such an important and well-written book that really goes after the theory of “originalism” as the method of interpretation for the constitution - how it has undermined “we the people” for decades with the excuse of being used for our betterment, yet that never actually coalesces. 

Also, wow. Just…the amount of cherry picking these men are allowed to get away with in the name of “democracy” is sickening. And God help me, Alito is an absolute piece of garbage, yes but if I could ever learn something about Reagan and be surprised by how absolutely HORRIFIC that human was…?? Nothing I learn about him is shocking anymore, almost everything leads back to that slimeball’s administration. 

Rivermouth: A Chronicle of Language, Faith, and Migration by Alejandra Oliva

challenging emotional informative reflective medium-paced

4.25

Excellent. 

Match this with: 

Tell Me How it Ends - Valeria Luiselli 
The Undocumented Americans - Karla Cornejo Villavicencio
Dear America: Notes of an Undocumented Citizen - Jose Antonio Vargas 
Solito - Javier Zamora

Decolonizing Therapy: Oppression, Historical Trauma, and Politicizing Your Practice by Jennifer Mullan

informative reflective slow-paced

4.0

War & Love by Sana Uqba

challenging emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced

4.5

Stunning. These poems are raw - full of grief and love for Yemen. The closest comparison I can make (to compare the tone) is to Yaffa’s ‘Blood Orange.’ 

Highly recommend

Electro Girl: Living a Symbiotic Existence with Epilepsy by Lainie Chait

informative fast-paced

3.0

Everyone’s experience with epilepsy is very personal and very unique. For Lanie, hers also took place when we were still in its infancy in terms of medication and understanding of how to treat the many different presentations. Where we are now versus then seems like decades - and we still have so far to go. 

For those who are able to manage their conditions holistically, this provides some hope and brings us back to our roots. Yet I also caution those (as one who has suffered from it since she was 5 and works in the field) not to throw the baby out with the bathwater.